1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to treating patients for health issues, and more specifically relates to systems, devices and methods that use muscle response testing and multi-polar magnetic devices for treating patients, particularly dental patients, for health issues.
2. Description of the Related Art
For centuries, particular locations on the body, referred to as acupuncture or acupressure points, have been used to aid the body in healing. Each of the points on a human body correlates to a particular electromagnetic line, meridian or “flow” that runs through the body. Hieroglyphics and pictographs from the Shang Dynasty, circa 1600-1100 B.C., suggest that acupuncture was in use during that time period. Chinese documents from the beginning of the first century contain the earliest written record of acupuncture points.
The mummified remains of Ötzi, an iceman estimated to be 5,300 years old, had tattoos on various locations of his body that correlate to acupuncture and meridian points. DNA evidence suggests that Ötzi had genetic markers associated with reduced fertility. It was also found that Ötzi had whipworm, an intestinal parasite, which would have caused him to have abdominal complaints. Ötzi was also found to be suffering from arthritis. Among the tattoos found on his body, the tattoo behind his left knee is the location used today for individuals suffering from abdominal complaints, reproductive organ complaints, and vertigo, to name a few. The tattoo located on the inside of his ankle is used for improving digestion. In addition, his fingernails indicated that he had been sick three times in the six months prior to his death (cause of death was a wound), the last time lasting about two weeks. One of the tattoos is at an area of rejuvenation for the body. The placement of tattoos on Ötzi's body fits his scientifically discovered medical history perfectly, and in fact, if Ötzi went to a practitioner today, there is a good chance that those very same acupuncture points would be chosen to treat his ailments.
The use of acupuncture and acupressure has a more recent history as well. In 1683, a Dutch physician named Willem Ten Rhijne studied acupuncture for two years in Japan, and he mentioned it in an essay he wrote in a medical text on arthritis.
In 1943, Dr. Reinhold Voll, a medical doctor in Germany, was diagnosed with bladder cancer. Western medicine provided him with no hope of a cure so he tried acupuncture and was able to completely heal himself. This experience started his quest to learn more about acupuncture. During his studies of acupuncture, he learned that the points used on the body for acupuncture were in fact more conductive of electricity than the tissue surrounding it. From this discovery he was able to develop the EAV Device (Electromagnetic Acupuncture according to Voll), which is a diagnostic machine that is still widely used today. It is believed that the extra conductivity at or around the acupuncture points is what makes the placement of therapeutic devices at these locations so effective in the treatment of health issues.
Today, acupuncture and other healing arts, such as Jin Shin Jyutsu®, are widely accepted. Medical acupuncture is taught in Harvard Medical School and the Helms Medical Institute, as well as at other well-respected medical schools. Acupuncture, Jin Shin Jyutsu, as well as other similar therapeutic techniques based on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), have been implemented in many hospitals to help with pain and healing. Although not always fully understood in the West, the value of these ancient healing arts is finally being appreciated by Western medicine.
Magnetism has been used for centuries for healing health complaints, and is possibly even older than acupuncture. Magnetic energy influences every cell in the body. If the cells become depolarized, it has been observed that an individual will tire. Thousands of years ago, the Eastern belief was that the life force or Chi is generated by the Earth's magnetic field. Its use is recorded in ancient Egyptian writings and it is known that Cleopatra wore magnetic jewelry (i.e., a lodestone) on her head in the belief that it would help her maintain a youthful appearance.
The existence of electromagnetic energy and its effect on the human body is being studied more and more in Western medicine. Many prestigious institutions have made it a focal point of clinical trials with such research being conducted at Harvard Medical School, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and the University of Texas Medical Branch. Today magnetic therapies are accepted and used in many countries.
In 1964, Dr. George J. Goodheart, a doctor of chiropractic medicine, realized that basic chiropractic adjustments were not providing complete and long-term relief for patients' physical complaints. In response, Dr. Goodheart combined the knowledge of those before him with his own experiences involving the muscles of the body in relation to acupuncture therapy to create Applied Kinesiology, a unique method of balancing the electromagnetic lines or flows that run throughout the body. Applied Kinesiology describes a branch of holistic medicine that studies the relationship between muscle movement and the health of the human body.
He achieved significant results using his new methods and found a very important and specific relationship between the muscles and the rest of the body. He later discovered a diagnostic and treatment tool that he called therapy localization. He observed that if a patient touched a part of the body where there was a problem or “blockage,” a weak muscle would become strong. From that observation, Dr. Goodheart realized he could use a muscle that was strong and go to various points on the body to detect a reflex or organ that created weakness. This weakness would show up in the muscle that was being tested. In this way problem areas could be identified and solutions could be found. For example, he discovered that if an individual was exposed to supplements that could help a patient, that the physical exposure of the individual to the correct supplement would make a weak muscle strong again.
There are many references that describe the underlying principals of Applied Kinesiology including “Applied Kinesiology,” written by Tom and Carole Valentine of Rochester, Vt. (1985); “Your Body Doesn't Lie,” written by John Diamond of New York, N.Y. (1980); and “Thorsons Introductory Guide to Kinesiology—Touch for Health,” written by Maggie La Tourelle and Anthea Courtenay of London, England (1992).
Building upon the efforts of Dr. Goodheart and Applied Kinesiology, there is a growing body of medical evidence that indicates that many health issues, whether physical, mental or emotional, are rooted in the electromagnetic lines or flows of the body. Different flows feed different sections of the body and a disruption in the flow will cause various health issues. The electromagnetic lines, also referred to as meridians, work in the body in a similar way as the electrical wiring in a house. When a circuit breaker “blows,” a section of the house fed by that current line loses power. It has long been observed that the removal of “blockages” of the meridian lines will restore good health. Different means have been used to stimulate these lines such as sharp stones, bone needles, and eventually metal needles, as well as hand techniques. Other methods used to “open” the blockages in electromagnetic lines include taping stationary magnets to a patient, magnetic beds, foot pads, plasters, etc, as well as various other types of machines.
Muscle response testing is a diagnostic methodology that uses the principals of Applied Kinesiology for determining a body's needs. Muscle response testing (MRT) is used widely by medical doctors, acupuncturists, chiropractors, osteopaths, veterinarians, and holistic dentists. There have been a number of books written on MRT including a seminal work written by Dr. David R. Hawkins in 1995.
During MRT, medical personnel will push down on a patient's extended arm while the patient resists the downward pressure. If the patient's nervous system is irritated for a period of time, a temporary short circuit will arise in the nervous system causing the arm being tested to momentarily weaken. During testing, medical personnel will irritate the nervous system by touching a sensitive area of the body, an acupuncture point or even by generating uncomfortable or irritating thoughts. Medical personnel may also ask a series of “yes/no” questions of the nervous system, looking for a weak or a strong response of the patient's extended arm. The weak or strong response reveals information about troubled areas in the body and provides additional information to medical personnel on how to treat the troubled areas.
MRT is used for virtually any question that can be asked of the body to make determinations about physiology, skeletal trauma, allergies, nutritional imbalances, emotional states or anything that may affect the body or the mind. MRT is a diagnostic tool that is only limited to the creativity of the practitioner's ability to ask a proper question. Once the information is ascertained, muscle testing may then be used to find out what the body or mind will respond to in terms of a resolution to the problem. Another benefit of MRT is that many of the problems that may be detected using MRT cannot be detected using conventional lab and exam tests and thus, are not discoverable except when using MRT.
There have been many efforts directed to using muscle response testing and applied kinesiology techniques. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,188,107 discloses a bi-digital O-ring test for imaging and diagnosis of internal organs of a patient. During the test, a patient forms an O-ring with a first hand by placing the finger tips of his thumb and one of his remaining fingers together, and a sample of tissue of an internal organ is placed in contact with the patient's second hand. The patient's internal organ is non-invasively externally probed with a probing instrument. The internal organ is the same type of organ as that of the sample. Simultaneously, a tester attempts to pull apart the O-ring shape of the first hand by means of the tester placing his thumb and one of the remaining fingers of each of his hands within the O-ring shape of the patient to form interlocking O-rings and pulling the thumb and the finger of the patient apart due to an electromagnetic field of the tissue of the sample interacting with an electromagnetic field of the internal organ being probed. This interaction is detected by the ability to pull apart O-ring shape, thereby permitting imaging of the boundaries of the internal organ being probed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,855,539 discloses a kinesiology testing apparatus having a base, and a foot treadle having a first end and a second end. The first end of the foot treadle is pivotally attached to the base. The apparatus includes a line having a first end and a second end, whereby the second end of the line is secured adjacent to the second end of the foot treadle. Means is provided for securing the first end of the line to a person's arm. When a person has his arm extended out parallel to a floor, a downward force exerted by a foot of the person upon the foot treadle transmits, via the line, a downward force upon the persons arm.
In spite of the above advances, there remains a need for improved systems, devices and methods for efficiently diagnosing medical conditions using muscle response testing and treating the medical conditions using magnetic devices.